Top Chef is back in the kitchen! Every week, Parade’s Mike Bloom interviews the latest chef told to pack their knives and leave Kentucky.

There are times during a season of Top Chef when a contestant may metaphorically take on water, not unlike a sinking ship. Various circumstances, whether it be a timing issue, a mistake that gets made, or a power outage lasting several hours, can test the true endurance and adaptability of a chef. The S.S. Brian Young admittedly had some holes in it when he made his trip to Lake Cumberland. He looked to replicate his Restaurant Wars win with an ambitious dish and an all-nighter. But his porchetta did not portend victory, leaving him in hot water.

Despite his deadpan nature, Brian regularly approached his cooking with enthusiasm. His daily life involved both a full-time restaurant job and apprenticing for a butcher, and he was hoping that work ethic would translate to victory for him. Unfortunately, the first time he received attention from the judges was when he was nearly sent home, after a last-minute decision to pickle cocoa nibs for a dessert made things overly acidic. He was able to achieve redemption the very next round, as he not only survived what many are calling the hardest Restaurant Wars to date, but his detail-oriented front of house service coupled with a superb chicken ballotine gave him a much-needed win. The victory lifted Brian’s spirits, and the butcher’s apprentice now felt he could be a cut above the competition with a chance to win. The ecstasy was unfortunately short-lived, as he wound up back in the bottom for the next three Elimination Challenges, earning critiques for sponge-like gnocchi and surprisingly poorly handled beef. As part of a team effort to create a boat party worthy of 100 diners’ favor, he decided to brine his tropical-themed porchetta. Unfortunately, the judges went ham on the fact that it tasted like ham, and after a few rounds of rough waters, they decided to dock Brian as the others sailed through to Nashville.

Read on to hear Brian’s thoughts on his time in the game, and check out “Top Chef: Last Chance Kitchen” each week to watch the eliminated chefs fight for redemption and a chance to get back into the competition.

Can you explain what exactly happened with your porchetta that made the belly separate from the loin?Cooking on a boat–with very old and untested cooking equipment–certainly didn’t help! Losing power for more than five hours really slowed me down and forced me to use a chafing dish with Sternos. I had to inject the brine into the pork rather than immersion brine as I’d planned and usually do. Something that would normally only take 30 minutes became three hours for full infusion of the aromatics into the liquid. Injecting the brine ultimately made the porchetta unravel.

You seemed angry after receiving comments from the judges in the party challenge, critiquing your fellow chefs for not speaking up about your sleepless night. Did those feelings come from exhaustion or legitimate frustration with the challenge?During the entire competition, no matter what, I stuck my neck out for others. It’s who I am; I’m fiercely loyal and wanted to help when someone found themselves in a sticky situation. No one threw me under the bus, but at the moment I didn’t feel defended by teammates. We were all scared to go home, so in hindsight, I understand.

One of the issues you suffered with on Top Chef, which was highlighted in this past episode, was your tendency to overthink and overreach on your dishes. Where did that habit come from? If you were selected to be on the No. 1 show in the entire world for what you do, wouldn’t you try to do your absolute best with every second you were given? I’m not sorry I avoided the easy yoke. I’m proud of what I tried my best to do. I was trying to go back to cooking my food, my way. Overreaching got me sent home, but I am not sorry at all that I reached as high as I thought possible. I’d do it again.In one episode, you talked about your previous drug addiction, and said, “I think the obsession it takes for a person to be ferociously addicted to something can be channeled into things that make you ultimately successful.” Did that inform how seriously and ambitious you took the competition? My addiction, and moving past it, has touched every facet of my life in crazy ways. I’m an obsessive person, and in turn, I don’t do anything halfway. I took Top Chef seriously partly because I’m obsessive, but mostly because it’s a serious thing to try and show your knowledge and skills simultaneously to the judges you respect and the entire world.Despite that ambition, you entered the competition without a dessert recipe, which cost you in the Réveillon de Noël challenge. Did that slip the mind, or did you choose not to go in with a dessert in your back pocket?I swear the dessert challenge is usually a Quickfire challenge. And I came with recipes. But three glasses of wine in, with a belly full of capon and caviar at 11:00 p.m. after a full day of filming? I made some weird choices.

You finished in the bottom four out of the last five challenges, with a win in the middle there to help build your confidence. How tough was it to dust yourself off every time you got negative comments for your dishes, especially so consecutively?Everyone in the competition is a great cook. It could have shaken out lots of ways. The win reminded me to trust my experience and what I bring to the table. Criticism isn’t easy to take, no matter where you get it.How do you react to Tom saying you were “cooking scared” in the butchery challenge?I agree. I wasn’t making my food. I was trying to fit in and make fine dining. I don’t cook like that.

Let’s talk about your win in Restaurant Wars. We saw the pure chaos that was going on in the episode proper, but what was it like in the moment?It was crazy. But, in hindsight, I felt like our team was the most under control. You have a bunch of staff that you’ve never worked with, staff you didn’t hire. We all did our best.

Have you adapted your service manual with the places you currently work, considering how well it went over? I took that so seriously, and I really wanted to create a culture for our team and staff despite the lack of time. It was the first time I was in that role, and I respect the front of house teams I’ve worked with even more after that challenge. As executive chef at The Emory, opening this spring in Boston, I trust the experts to do what they do best. But I also look forward to collaborating on the creation of our culture.

Finally, I want to talk about the pompadours. I got Brandon’s take on who has the better coiffe, but what do you have to say about it?Mine is better by sheer merit of not making me look like one of The Beach Boys.

AMG/Parade Digital

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